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[Guidance Overview]
National City Corporation Settles ERISA Suit for $43M
Excerpt: "The settlement . . . will provide for a payment of $43 mil.lion to the plan . . . which will then be allocated to the accounts of all current and former participants and beneficiaries of the National City Savings and Investment Plan who had portions of their plan accounts invested in National City common stock or fund units in the National City Stock Fund at any time during the period September 5, 2006, to December 31, 2008, and to Plan participants who held mutual funds of Allegiant Asset Management Company in their Plan accounts at any time from March 25, 2002, to December 31, 2009."
(PLANSPONSOR.com)

Weighing Retirement Calculator Options
Excerpt: "Experts say coming up with an exact retirement nest egg is very difficult considering all of the variables needing to be combined. And while retirement calculators are giving many users a good start in figuring out their financial needs, several experts say these programs need to better address key planning issues."
(Workforce Management; free registration required)

ASPPA Request that IRS Clarify/Limit Tax Return Preparer Registration for Form 5500 Preparers
Excerpt: "[Form] 5500 is primarily an information return for employee benefit plans and that the data collected, for the most part, has little or no impact on an actual tax return. It is critical that support staff that only input data relating to Form 5500 preparation but do not exercise 'discretion or independent judgment be excluded from the new registration and the Circular 230 process,'"
(Wolters Kluwer)

Book: Reorienting Retirement Risk Management
Excerpt: "This volume explores how workers and firms can reassess the risks associated with retirement saving and dissaving to identify creative adjustments to adapt to these new risks and realities."
(Pension Research Council)

Wal-Mart to End Employee Profit-Sharing
Excerpt: "Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the largest U.S. private employer, plans to end profit-sharing contributions in February, replacing them with matches to employee 401(k) retirement plans to bring down benefits costs."
(Cincinnati.Com)

The Source, Second Edition by Kristi Cook, JD and Ellie Lowder, includes the final 403(b) regulations, their impact and practical suggestions on how plan sponsors can manage their 403(b) program in compliance with applicable IRS requirements and deadlines. It also covers all aspects of ERISA and non-ERISA retirement plans for public education and tax-exempt 501(c)3 employers and includes comprehensive technical information with explanations and citations of relevant Code Sections.

[Guidance Overview]
IRS Sets 2011 Blended Meals and Incidental Expenses Rates for Transportation Industry
Excerpt: "The blended M&IE rates are available to employers directly involved in moving people or goods . . . . They provide a level at which employers in the transportation industry may reimburse their employees for expenses. Employers whose employees travel frequently also may use the rates. They are intended to simplify recordkeeping for such employers, since their employees may travel during a single payroll period to many locations with different M&IE rates."
(Thompson Publishing Group Inc.)

Mandated Clawbacks Will Create New Tensions Between Executives and Boards
Excerpt: "Virtually all publicly traded companies must rewrite their clawback provisions, many of which were developed in response to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) but don't go as far as required by Dodd-Frank. Where previous law called for clawbacks after 'acts of commission' by executives, the new law mandates clawbacks from executive officers regardless of whether the acts that led to the restatement were within their control."
(Towers Watson)

SHRM Working on 'Cost Per Hire' Metric
Excerpt: "[A report] said a draft standard is now being reviewed by members of SHRM's Staffing and Workforce committee and will then be submitted to the American National Standards Institute where it can be deemed official."
(PLANSPONSOR.com)

Tennessee High Court Denies Benefits for Widow of Murdered Employee
Excerpt: "The Supreme Court of Tennessee has denied a claim for workers' compensation benefits by the widow of an employee whose murder at his workplace is unsolved. The state's high court agreed with lower court decisions that the employee's death was the result of a neutral assault and that the 'street risk' doctrine was inapplicable because the employer's premises were not open to the public."
(PLANSPONSOR.com)

LEGO Earns Kudos from Working Moms
Excerpt: "For the sixth straight year, Enfield-based LEGO Systems has made the 'Working Mother Magazine 100 Best Companies' list. The company has been recognized for its high approval rating among employees, generous family leave and flexible working conditions."
(MassLive.com LLC)

Wellness Programs and Employee Ownership
Wellness programs can significantly reduce health care costs while improving employee well-being, commitment, and productivity. While there are many variations on these programs, several key practices have emerged. There are also legal requirements for these programs. This issue brief features articles by leading experts on these issues as well as several detailed ESOP company case studies. The Web page for the brief features a lengthy excerpt to read.
(National Center for Employee Ownership)

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